Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League
American Collegiate Hockey Association
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The Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL) is an American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division I level ice hockey league. The GLCHL is made up of nine schools, including one in Indiana, one in Illinois, and seven in Michigan.
| |
| Conference | ACHA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010 |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Division | Division I |
| No. of teams | 9 |
| Region | Great Lakes |
Most recent champion | Northwood (1st title) (2024–25) |
| Most titles | Adrian Bulldogs (8 titles) |
| Website | Official website |
History
The league was announced in late 2009 and began play in the Fall of 2010 with six member teams, all located within the state of Michigan.[1] Eastern Michigan, Michigan-Dearborn and Western Michigan all joined the league after competing as members of the Central States Collegiate Hockey League. Oakland and Adrian College previously competed as ACHA Division 1 Independents. Davenport joined after making the transition from ACHA Division 2 to Division 1.[1] In 2012, Kent State announced they would move from the CSCHL to the league beginning in the 2012–13 season. Indiana Tech and Rochester College joined the league in the 2015–16 season. Before the 2017–18 season Indiana Tech left to join the newly formed NAIA Division. Calvin College moved up from ACHA Division 3 to fill the spot left by Indiana Tech. In 2019, Rochester and Michigan-Dearborn left the conference after the NAIA Division consolidated into the Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC), the all-sport conference for both RU and UMD.[2] In recent years, though, the league has been able to supplement its membership with programs making the transition from ACHA D2 to D1, adding Grand Valley State for the 2020–2021 season,[3] and Purdue University Northwest for the 2022–2023 season.[4]
Adrian College has won the most regular season and playoff titles with seven regular season and five playoff titles.
Format
The conference plays a 16-game league schedule, two games against each team—home team alternates each season. In addition team schedules will include other ACHA Division I opponents. The GLCHL holds a league championship tournament at the end of the regular season in February.[5] The winner of the league championship advances to the ACHA National Championships which take place at Centene Community Ice Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
Member schools
Current members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Left | Primary Conderence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Central Michigan Universitya |
Mount Pleasant, Michigan | 1892 | Public | 14,135 | Chippewas | 2025 | ? | Mid-American (MAC) |
| Northwood Universityb | Midland, Michigan | 1959 | Nonsectarian | 1,344 | Timberwolves | 2024 | ? | Great Midwest (G-MAC) |
| Oakland Universityb | Rochester, Michigan | 1957 | Public | 20,519 | Golden Grizzlies | 2010 | ? | Horizon |
| Saginaw Valley State Universityb | University Center, Michigan | 1963 | Public | 7,523 | Cardinals | 2024 | ? | Great Lakes (GLIAC) |
| University of Michigan-Flint | Flint, Michigan | 1956 | Public | 7,124 | Kodiaks | 2025 | ? | Non-NCAA Affiliated |
| University of Toledoa | Toledo, Ohio | 1872 | Public | 18,319 | Rockets | 2024 | ? | Mid-American (MAC) |
| Western Michigan University[a][c] | Kalamazoo, Michigan | 1903 | Public | 19,887 | Broncos | 2010 | ? | Mid-American (MAC) |
- Notes
Former members
- Notes
- Member school left the GLCHL to form the Great Lakes Six Hockey Conference (GL6), beginning the 2024–25 school year.
- Adrian has NCAA Division III hockey competing in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA).
- Currently an NCAA Division III athletic conference.
- Currently an NCAA Division II athletic conference.
- Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
- Formerly known as Rochester College until 2019, then later known as Rochester University until 2024.
Conference arenas
| School | Hockey Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Central Michigan | Martin Ice Arena | 300 |
| Northwood | Midland Civic Arena | 1,000 |
| Oakland | Onyx Rochester Ice Arena | 750 |
| Saginaw Valley State | Saginaw Bay Ice Arena | 250 |
| Michigan-Flint | Crystal Fieldhouse Ice Arena | 350 |
| Toledo | Team Toledo Ice House | 750 |
| Western Michigan | Wings Event Center | 1,000 |
Past champions
| Regular season | Tournament | Tournament site | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Adrian College[7] | Oakland[8] | The Peak Ice Arena, Romulus, Michigan |
| 2012 | Oakland[9] | Adrian College[10] | Arrington Ice Arena, Adrian, Michigan |
| 2013 | Adrian College | Davenport | Patterson Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2014 | Adrian College | Adrian College | ONYX Ice Arena, Rochester, MI |
| 2015 | Adrian College | Adrian College | The Rink, Battle Creek, MI |
| 2016 | Davenport | University of Michigan-Dearborn | University of Michigan-Dearborn Fieldhouse, Dearborn, MI |
| 2017 | Adrian College | University of Michigan-Dearborn | KSU Ice Arena, Kent, OH |
| 2018 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Ann Arbor Ice Cube, Ann Arbor, MI |
| 2019 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Arrington Ice Arena, Adrian, MI |
| 2020 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Patterson Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2021 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Griff's Georgetown, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2022 | Adrian College | Grand Valley State | Griff's Georgetown, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2023 | Adrian College | Adrian College | Eagles Ice Center, Grand Rapids, MI |
| 2024 | Adrian College | Purdue Northwest | Farmington Hills Ice Arena, Oakland, MI |
| 2025 | Northwood University | Northwood University | Midland Civic Arena, Midland, MI |
National tournament results
- 2011: #2 Davenport won the 2011 ACHA Men's DI National Championship defeating #1 Lindenwood 3–2 in overtime; #4 Adrian defeated 4–5 in 2ot by #5 Delaware in Quarter-final Round; #11 Oakland defeated 2–6 by #3 Ohio in Quarter-final Round.[11]
- 2018: #2 ranked Adrian College won the ACHA Men's Div. I National Championship against #5 Illinois, defeating them 8–1.